A Time Lord's Path
by DiaDuitCluaiste
Summary: You might want to read my other fiction, "The Paradox Girl" first. 11/River, Amy/Rory and Merry/It's-gunna-be-a-surprise. Cruel, I know, but it'll be worth it  I hope . The Doctor takes his daughter, Merry, in the TARDIS with him. Before/during AGMGTW.
1. Paris, 1872

**Note to reader: It's finally here: A Time Lord's Path! It took me forever to find a name. And it's not even very good, but I couldn't think of anything else. I'll bet you that I'll come up with one as soon as I post this. Sod's Law is such a bitch. But anyway, it's here and it's full of Merry and Paris, 1872. Please tell me what you think. It might be a few days or so before the next chapter is up; sorry! Believe it or not, I do have a life other than Doctor Who... Ahahaha, just kidding. I'm sure that there was something else that I wanted to explain, but I cannae remember... Urgh! Never mind. Hope you like this though!**

"What I don't understand is how we got off that ship alive." Merry said as she sat on the steps of the TARDIS, watching her father fiddle around with some misbehaving wires. The old girl had hit a bump in the Rift mid-flight, causing them to land in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Right at the bottom, to be precise. After convincing Amy that it wouldn't be a good idea to open the doors when the protective field around them wasn't really working, the Doctor had swiftly got to work on repairing the damage.

"Well, it's quite simp-" the Doctor cut himself off with a loud yelp as the wires he was holding exploded and ignited a spark. Blowing out the little flame, he continued, "That's quite simple. I convinced him to teleport me back to the TARDIS. I then towed his ship half way across the galaxy until we'd found a compatible energy source, and voila: Captain Cearnaigh-Faolán zoomed off into hyper-space."

"Without an apology or a thank you?" Merry asked sarcastically.

"Actually, he was very apologetic. He even left you a gift… which I think I've lost already. Sorry about that." The Doctor said as Merry rolled her eyes. Soldering a few more wires together successfully, he muttered, "Poor guy…"

"Poor guy?" Merry asked incredulously, "He nearly made me into petrol stew!"

"One: his ship doesn't run on petrol. Two: I wouldn't have let that happen. And besides," the Doctor continued, sucking his burnt index finger, "The only reason he reacted so inadvisably was because his mate and cubs were on the evacuation shuttle. The cubs were only three days old. He was actually a really nice guy. Not amazing at small talk, but he made a mean space whiskey." The Doctor paused, adding, "You were unconscious for that bit."

The young girl rolled her eyes as the Time Lord snapped the goggles onto his forehead and jumped off his swing. He rushed up to the top of the stairs, followed by his daughter.

"Well, OK. But he still could have been a little nicer. And I wouldn't exactly want to run into any of his friends." She commented, sitting on the bar railings, "It's a wonder you're still here, after all the aliens you've met."

"Not all creatures are out there to get us, Merry." The Doctor argued, "The Fuath are, by nature, actually quite a primitive race, apart from the space shuttles and such like. They prefer to live quietly and rarely having anything to do with space and other creatures."

"What about the Banshee?" Amy asked from her spot on the sofa, where she lay in Rory's protective arms, "From what Cearnaigh said, it sounded like they're as bad as the British government."

"Or worse, even." Rory said, shuddering in mock horror. Amy smacked him lightly in the chest.

"That's really not our problem." The Doctor answered, "Anyway, he sounded pretty proud to be their 'servant', no matter how strict the rules are. If you think about it, keeping to strict rules is much better than having strict rules and letting things fall through the net." There was a general murmur of agreement, so the Doctor began flicking some switches on the TARDIS console.

"Now who's for an adventure?" he asked, clapping his hands together, "What about, oh I don't know, Paris?" At this he gave River a conspicuous wink. She grinned and Merry convulsed slightly in disgust, moving to stand on the other side of the central column. The Time Lord leant around to push down one of the many levers, and River took the opportunity to whisper in his ear.

"Do you really think that this is a good idea?" she asked. Nonchalantly fiddling with the monitor, he replied.

"Why wouldn't it be?" he muttered quietly, frowning as the screen before him whirred loudly.

"Merry's eighteen; she's not exactly blind to these sorts of things. And if she's going to be prone to dangerous tantrums, isn't it best we avoid anything that could cause one?" River asked, pressing a button and efficiently returning the screen to normality. Looking put off by her interfering, the Doctor pressed the same button, reversing the effect with a frown.

"She won't be there. We can get rid of them easily enough." He commented.

"And what about my parents?" she asked.

"Well, them too. All three of them." He replied stubbornly. River sighed.

"Fine. I just hope you're right." She said flatly, walking around the console to her daughter. The Doctor eyed her suspiciously. Merry seemed to be handling everything very well.

Suddenly, the TARDIS landed noisily.

"Paris, 1872!" the Doctor cried, "Early January; excellent."

"Why?" Amy asked curiously, leaning against the console.

"Lots of governmental rubbish happens in March, and it wouldn't be a good thing to get tangled up in." he explained offhandedly, "Now who's hungry?" Running to the door, the Doctor pulled River with him as they flew out of the door and onto the Paris street.

Snow fell readily from the dark navy sky.

"Real snow!" the Doctor cried, letting go of River's hand to spin around, gazing at the sky. The stars were clearly visible and they seemed to twinkle contently above, watching the people below with great interest and pride. He heard Amy giggle as she and Rory stepped out of the TARDIS. Grinning uncontrollably, the Time Lord turned to face his friends, noting that they looked just as happy, "Allons y!" As he was filled with the warm and fuzzy feeling of reliving the past, the Doctor twirled on his heels and set off down the road.

People garbed in thick winter dress hurried along, scarfs, hats and gloves covering almost every inch of their naturally exposed skin. Small groups of children played in the snow outside tall almost gothic houses, their cries of delight echoing down the road. Everything was covered in snow and the water of the river that they were walking by was completely frozen.

"Where are we eating, then?" Amy called after the Time Lord. He stopped and turned around to face them.

"I don't know. Anywhere, you choose." He decided, grinning widely. His expression was reflected in every face, but one: Merry's. She just looked at him blankly before turning her attention to the people going past.

"Well, then. If you say so." Amy said, skipping off down the street and pulling Rory with her. River followed them with a slight roll of the eyes. Merry stayed standing where she was, until she realised everyone had moved on. She wandered slightly, heading after her family. The Doctor pulled back, coming up beside her.

"Are you alright?" he asked in concern. It took her a while for the question to register, but eventually, she replied.

"Of course." She said.

"It's a lot to take in, isn't it?" He said understandingly. She nodded.

"Yeah. I don't think it's quite hit me yet." She replied, "I always dreamed about you taking me on trips and stuff, I just never really thought that it would happen." The Doctor frowned.

"Never?" he asked.

"No, you always said that it was too dangerous. Even though I'd been in danger from the moment I was born…" she trailed off and looked into his eyes, "You don't know what happened when I was born and… how I was delivered, so I probably shouldn't say anything more." But the Doctor was intrigued. Evidently there was some mystery shrouding her birth.

"What do you mean?" he asked eagerly, but at the same time, worriedly. She smiled gently.

"Spoilers." She said.

"Urgh. You are just like your mother." He grumbled.

Laughing, they reached the three Ponds, standing outside a cozy looking restaurant. They went in and were seated at a table in the corner of the room, far away from the nattering of a table of local housewives. It seemed that, although the food was amazing, it wasn't a place that the rich visited very often. Candles lit the room well and the young girl serving them – Merry was surprised to discover that she and the girl were of similar ages – was friendly beyond compare. Wine was all around, except that Amy couldn't have any, Merry was under age, and the Doctor just didn't want any. So, more like drinks half the way around. Using what he could find in his seemingly endless pockets, the Doctor left a healthy tip.

"So, what you're saying is that Shania Twain's 'That Don't Impress Me Much' was actually about you." Amy repeated as they exited the restaurant into the cold street. The Doctor grinned.

"Pretty much." He said, before adding, "She fancied me."

"Oh, clearly." Amy snorted, taking Rory's hand as they walked, "Where to next?" The Doctor looked to River, giving her a meaningfully look before turning back to Amy.

"Well, I've heard that there's this great spot for top class buskers. Perhaps you could go and take a look at them? I've heard that they're very good." He suggested.

"Wait a minute," Rory said as Amy narrowed her eyes, "What do you mean? What about you?"

"Well, I have some work to do back in the TARDIS and I thought that River could help me. You two can take Merry and explore." He said, just about managing to sound nonchalant.

It was obvious that neither of them believed him and he was so terrified that he didn't even want to look at Merry to see her reaction. After a few awkward seconds, in which the Doctor remained perfectly motionless and calm, the Ponds caved.

"Fine." Rory said, turning to his granddaughter, "Come on, Merry." The two of them walked off away from the Doctor but Amy stayed to whisper threateningly in the Time Lord's ear.

"I don't know what you're up to, and I don't think that I want to, but you'd better not hurt my little girl." She growled. The Doctor didn't respond; he only let a small amused smile slip from the side of his mouth. Eventually, Amy jogged after Rory and Merry, catching up with them fairly quickly. The Doctor watched as Amy muttered something to her husband who turned to glare at the Time Lord briefly, before being pulled away gently by his wife. Merry waved to her parents, and then followed suit.

Slowly, the Doctor turned to River.

"Looks like it's just you and me then." He said teasingly. The archaeologist smiled.

"Shame. I rather like threesomes." She said mischievously, as he licked his lips absent mindedly and replied suggestively.

"Back to the TARDIS it is, then."


	2. Dating Droids

**Note to readers: Sorry for the shortness of this chapter, but I've had some general mess to sort out lately and I think I'm back on track now. Hopefully more of Merry to come! Enjoy.**

They'd barely got back to the TARDIS and closed the doors before items of clothes were strewn carelessly across the floor. The Doctor and River made their way slowly up the stairs, their hands never quite leaving each other's bodies. Soon, she had pushed him down onto the floor and her hands were just moving down to unfasten his trousers when he stopped her.

"Wait. Do you think that we should really be doing this here?" he asked.

"Why not?" she replied cheekily, kissing his neck.

"I don't know. It just kinda feels… dirty." He said, squirming slightly. River groaned, resting her forehead on his bare chest.

"That's the whole point, sweetie." She muttered, pulling herself up so that she could look in his eyes. The Doctor smiled sheepishly.

"Oh…" he said in embarrassment. River smiled at his blush and continued.

But that only lasted a minute.

"Hang on." He said, pushing River off him and getting up, turning to face her as she stayed sitting on the floor half dressed, "There's still so much that I don't understand." River sighed.

"Well, forget about it." She replied, "Enjoy the few moments we have alone. That stuff doesn't matter now."

"But it does!" the Doctor cried. He had spent so long with River keeping secrets from him and finding ways out of telling him what he needed to know. She always said that he had to find out himself. But she usually told him. So, why couldn't she tell him now; it would just save time and it would prevent them going through the same conversation over and over again. Tell me. No. Why not? Spoilers.

"For once, River, tell me." He pleaded desperately. When she remained silent he continued, "Merry mentioned her birth. She said that there was something to do with her delivery and things like that. What happened?"

"Doctor, I can't." River replied, tensing at the mention of such events.

"Just tell me!" he cried, "I'm her father. I have a right to know."

"And you will," the archaeologist said, standing up and approaching her husband, "But when the time comes and you experience it all for yourself."

"Experience it for myself?" the Doctor cried incredulously, "I can't wait that long!" River laughed, standing up and moving to stroke his chest gently.

"Neither can I." she said suggestively, licking her lips. Momentarily distracted, he mumbled some approval and began to run his hands along his wife's body.

Suddenly, he shook his head.

"No!" he cried, trying to shift past her. But due to River's diversion, the Doctor had failed to notice that she now had her hand down his trousers. He closed his eyes and hung his head, "I should've known." She grinned.

"You really should've…"

Half an hour later, they emerged from the TARDIS, arm in arm and laughing heartily together.

"I don't believe you!" the Doctor cried and they stumbled down the snow-covered street in absolute hysterics, "You mean it just fell off!" River didn't reply; she was laughing so hard that tears were streaming down her face readily, obstructing her view, so the Doctor continued, "That's disgusting!"

"I know." River managed to say, "I don't know what happened. I mean, one minute it was, you know, there, the next it was on the floor."

"Mine doesn't fall off like that." He retorted, causing his wife to weakly slap his chest as she doubled over. He smiled, "And that's why you shouldn't date a droid. Things like that happen."

"It certainly made things more interesting." She replied, wiping her eyes carefully.

"I'll bet it did." He commented, wrapping his arm around her waist as he led her away from a rather dodgy looking drunkard who was walking dangerously close to the frozen river.

"Where do you suppose the others are?" River asked, still grinning widely.

"Anywhere and everywhere most likely." He said, "Let's go and check out the buskers, shall we?"

"Of course, sweetie." River replied with a nod.

They soon reached the spot that the Doctor had been talking about, but Amy, Rory and Merry were nowhere to be seen.

"Maybe they took a wrong turn." River suggested unsurely.

But the Time Lord hardly noticed her. There was something seriously wrong here. The musicians were indeed where he'd said that they would be. But they were playing for no one. The people walking past scurried along as if their tails were between legs. They were entirely covered by their clothes; nothing but their eyes were showing through. And the emotion that they showed wasn't happiness, or weariness or even the cold: it was fear. They were terrified of being outside. They covered themselves up because they didn't want to be recognized, as if simply being spotted outside was a terrible crime.

The Doctor turned slowly to River, who mirrored what he imagined his current expression looked like.

"Can you feel it too?" he whispered. She looked back to the man playing the fiddle in the street in front of them.

"Yes." She muttered, turning away without meeting his eyes, "We need to find the others." But they didn't even have time to start moving before a bloodcurdling scream filled the air.


	3. Disappearances

**Note to readers: I know, I know: it's been ages since I last updated. I've had a bad case of writer's block**.** A case to end all cases. But fear not, this fiction is about to get interesting...**

Amy, Rory and Merry had quickly become bored of the buskers – mainly because they insisted on playing the same four bars of a piece of music continuously – and so they had decided to go off and explore the rest of Paris. Although she was enjoying the atmosphere, Amy couldn't quite shake off the feeling that she was on a trip with a granddaughter who was less than ten years younger than her. It was too weird for words. Rory, on the other hand, seemed to be taking it in his stride. In fact, it was almost as if he was enjoying the situation.

"So, when's your birthday?" the centurion asked.

"The twelfth of September," Merry replied, "4992. At least, that's what my birthday certificate says."

"What do you mean?" Rory asked curiously, catching Amy as she almost slipped on a patch of ice.

"I was actually born in the Gamma Forest in 5287." Merry said with a grin.

"Should you have told us that?" he asked mockingly. The young Time Lord cringed.

"You won't tell Pappy, will you?" she asked worriedly.

"Not if you tell me what this whole 'Pappy' thing is about." Rory teased, "Is it just a Gallifreyan term for 'Daddy'?"

"Sort of." Merry said, "A lot of Latin and English words are derived from simplified forms of Old High Gallifreyan, like Pater or Papa."

"I thought that English was derived from Latin." Rory commented.

"Most of it was, but don't forget that the Time Lords have been around from the dawn of time; travellers from beyond the stars had a lot of influence on the languages of Earth." Merry said. He nodded in agreement and so she continued, "So, yes. Pappy just means… Daddy." Rory grinned at the young girl's blush. But Amy was still having trouble coming to terms with the position that she was in.

"So, let me get this straight," she started, pulling their attention away from each other, "You're our granddaughter. And we're your grandparents." Merry smiled.

"Yes." She stated simply, "But it's probably best that you don't think of it that way."

"Right. How else am I meant to think of you, then?" Amy asked.

"Just, think of me as Merripen." Merry shrugged in response.

"Our granddaughter, Merripen?" the Scot repeated stupidly. The young Time Lord only gave her a sympathetic half-smile.

"Amy, are you alright?" Rory asked in concern. Amy nodded uncertainly.

"I just… all this is making me feel a bit queasy." She replied weakly, gripping her husband's shoulder as she felt a sudden nauseous flush.

"I think we should find somewhere to sit down, OK?" Rory said gently to Amy, pulling her into the nearest pub. He pushed the door open, helping Amy in. She tried to pull away, content that she would be able to hold up her own weight, but Rory wasn't having any of it. He insisted on holding her around the waist to support her.

"What are you doing?" cried the bartender: a portly, bald man, with what sounded like a proper London accent, "We don't want no women in 'ere. Can't you read the sign, mate? No ladies past eight thir'y. So take your Doris and beat it." Rory hardly flinched; Amy loved the strong, centurion side of him, especially when he was using it to protect her.

"We don't want any drinks, just somewhere to sit down. My wife's pregnant and she needs to rest." Rory retorted calmly.

"I don't care." The bartender said flatly, "Get out or I'll throw you out."

"You're going to throw out my pregnant wife and my…" Rory stumbled for a second, looking to Merry for help.

"Sister…" Amy muttered to him.

"And my little sister?" he finished, attempting rather unsuccessfully to sound threatening.

"Yes." The bald man replied, wiping his hands on his apron and making his way around the bar and over to them. Amy's heart skipped a beat as the muscular man headed their way, cracking his knuckles as he went, "Now, do I 'ave to throw you, or are you gunna leave?" By now, Rory had positioned himself in front of Amy, and the bartender was stood less than a metre away. He smiled grimly, exposing a set of yellow, rotting teeth. Over Rory's shoulder, Amy could see him look her husband up and down, seemingly identifying him as very little of a threat. She pulled Merry backwards as the bartender turned on her, reaching out a hand and stroking the young girl's cheek. He laughed repulsively as Merry shrank away and gave him one of the filthiest looks Amy had ever seen.

Finally, the Scot spoke.

"Rory, I don't like it here. Can we go somewhere else?" she asked, glaring at the bartender.

"I think that's a good idea." Rory replied, reaching back to push Merry towards the door. Amy heard the door open and she felt the icy breeze against neck. After receiving a head nod from her husband, the Scot turned and ushered the young Time Lord out onto the street, following her carefully before checking to see that Rory had followed. Once the three of them were outside, Merry spoke.

"Well, he was friendly, wasn't he?" she said sarcastically. Rory grimaced in reply, paying more attention to Amy, who was tipping slightly.

"Are you alright?" he asked cautiously, holding his wife's shoulders as he looked into her eyes. Amy nodded.

"Fine." She replied, coughing slightly as a second bout of nausea hit her.

"Not you're not." He said flatly, wrapping his arm around her side and setting off down the street, "You need to sit down somewhere warm."

They wandered the street for a little while longer, soon discovering that no one allowed women into their pubs late at night, and cafés expected you to buy something. After a while, Rory decided that they should knock on the door of a house. They'd ventured quite far into the poorer parts of town, and they, surprisingly, felt a lot safer there than in the richer streets. Although she hated to admit it, Amy could feel her state gradually worsening as they walked. She was cold and wet from the falling snow, and she felt very ill, whether from pregnancy hormones or from the weather, she didn't know. Eventually, Rory knocked on the door of a little friendly looking cottage, telling Amy to look as ill as possible, which didn't involve much acting on her behalf.

The door opened a crack and a smallish woman peered out.

"Yes?" she asked quietly, surveying the three people at her door with suspicion as she patted her tightly tied back brown hair self-consciously; she couldn't have been older than about twenty-two or twenty-three.

"My wife is very ill-" Rory started.

"I'm fine…" Amy muttered argumentatively.

"She's pregnant. No one else will take us in. Please, we only want somewhere for her to rest before we can find our friends and go home." The centurion continued, wrapping his arm around Amy as she tipped dangerously. Amy felt Merry grip her shoulder as she swayed, trying to stand up on her own. The little woman studied them carefully, her wide, terrified eyes falling pitifully on the visibly ailing Scot. Finally she nodded, opening the door to reveal a welcoming warm glow.

"Come in. Quickly." She said, standing back and letting Rory help Amy inside. She heard the door close behind Merry as the little woman offered her a chair nearest the warm fireplace, which she graciously took. Rory knelt in front of her, stroking her cheek and feeling her forehead. His eyes were full of concern as he rested a gentle hand on her stomach. Suddenly, a cup was thrust in front of her. Amy turned to look at the little woman, who simply said, "Tea helped me when I was pregnant."

"What's in it?" Rory asked carefully, looking at the steaming liquid.

"Just tea." The woman said plainly, "I'm not trying to poison her, if that's what you're worried about. I could've turned you away if I'd wanted to."

Rory stood up, nodding and offering his hand to her.

"Yes, I'm sorry. Thank you for taking us in." he said, "I'm Rory, this is my wife Amy and my… sister, Merry." She gave him a small smile and shook his hand.

"I'm Jeannette. And I couldn't let you wander the streets at this time. It's dangerous, especially for a woman with child." The little lady commented, ushering Merry into the chair beside Amy, as Rory sat in the arm of his wife's chair.

"What do you mean?" Amy asked in concern, wrapping her arm protectively about her middle. Jeanette, who was now sat opposite them, just gave her a blank look.

"Well, they go missing, don't they?" She said, "Pregnant women go out and then they never come back."

"How long has this been happening?" Merry asked, leaning forwards. Amy almost smiled at the way that she treated the situation the same way that the Doctor would.

"Ever since the Commune was disestablished in May last year." Jeannette said, "People think that they're taking the children and experimenting on them whilst their bones are still weak." Amy closed her eyes, the mental image making her feel worse than she already did.

"Who? The Commune?" Merry asked, seemingly unphased by the information.

"Well yes. They won't admit it and it would only make sense." The little woman replied.

"I'm not so sure." Muttered Merry, sitting back in her chair with a thoughtful expression on her face.

"What do you mean?" Rory asked with a frown. Merry glanced at him and then returned to staring into nothingness.

For a moment, Amy thought that she wasn't prepared to reply. But then the young girl took a deep breath, sighed in a Doctor-like way, and then spoke.

"It's too obvious." She said plainly.

"You're dismissing a theory because it's too obvious?" Rory repeated incredulously. Merry nodded.

"Pretty much." She said with a grin, "It would be the perfect cover."

"You're so much like him…" Amy muttered. She had been gazing at her granddaughter for the whole time they had been discussing the strange goings on, but due to her nausea she hadn't really felt up to joining in with the conversation. Now she had finally spoken, and she'd spoken her mind too. Merry was like the Doctor all over again, yet she was so like River. She was an impossible mixture of the Time Lord and the archaeologist. It was truly amazing.

Merry looked to Amy and frowned.

"What?" she asked.

"You're like him, like the Doctor." Amy answered, a little out of it still. The young girl just looked confused and she made as if she were about to answer, when a horrible scream echoed through the walls. All four of them rushed out of the door, their discussion forgotten, and onto the street, running almost head first in the Doctor and River, who were heading in the same direction. Amy forgot her illness as she shouted after the Doctor, who had barely paused, "Did you hear it?"

"Yes." River answered for him, quickly checking her daughter over as if she had expected Merry to be injured already, "Do you know where it came from?"

"No, but I'm guessing the way that the Doctor's going." Rory said, pointing to the Time Lord who had just rounded a corner and whizzed out of their sight. They hurried after him, dodging several people who had stuck their heads out of their windows to observe the commotion. They turned down the alley, expecting to meet with a dreadful sight, probably involving a lot of blood and a possible alien attack. But what they saw was far from that.

Amy couldn't help but feel a slight twinge of disappointment as they stopped running and made their way over to the Doctor. The Time Lord was stood in front of a tall, young man, dressed in a warm winter cloak, whose face was covered in tears. He was holding a young girl in his arms; the child – who Amy assumed must have been the one who screamed – was crying hysterically, crying "Mama" over and over again.

"But… I don't understand!" the young man exclaimed, indicating to the space in front of him where the Doctor was now standing, "She was right here!"

"Who was there? What happened?" the Doctor asked urgently, now taking out his sonic screwdriver and buzzing it around the dark, dank alley that they were now in, but not moving or turning from the man's side.

"My wife. She was standing right beside me and then… and then she wasn't. I don't know what happened." He replied, stroking the auburn hair of the little girl in a feeble attempt to comfort her.

"Did you see anything?" the Doctor asked mechanically, giving up with the empty alley and instead running his hands over the child, examining her and then moving onto her father.

"No, nothing but a flash of light." He answered.

"Light? What kind of light?" River asked, moving forwards and taking the little girl from the man's arms and passing her to Merry as he became visibly more distraught; the Doctor pranced around him, looking him up and down.

"I… I don't know! White? Blue? It was bright and it hurt my eyes, but…" he replied, becoming more and more distracted by the Time Lord's movements. Eventually, the young man exploded completely, "Listen, would you stop faffing about and just tell me where my wife has gone!"


	4. One Lead Too Short

**Note to readers: I promised you it would get interesting, and it has. And it still will do. Trust me, I surprise myself some times. Probably not something to boast about, but there we have it. So enjoy this. Speculate. Because I bet none of you will be able to guess it. Hear that challenge? I'm willing to be proven wrong. Surprise me, like I surprise you!**

The Doctor straightened up, surprised by the sudden outburst.

"Sorry, yes: wife. I don't know. I'm sorry." He said nervously, "But I will do everything I can to find her."

"Was she pregnant?" Amy asked abruptly, causing everyone to turn and face her, especially the Doctor and River. The crying of the little girl had subsided enough for them to be able to speak at a normal level as Merry sang gently to her, and now she was simply whimpering.

"What?" the Doctor asked incredulously, stepping towards the Scot slightly.

"Yes. She was. How did you know?" the young man said, a frown creasing her forehead.

"Long story." Amy replied, trying to avoid the suspicious glares of her daughter and the Doctor, "Do you… live in Paris?"

"Well, no. We only came here for the weekend to visit family." The tall man stuttered, "Look, what does this have to do with Elise?"

"Yes, what does this have to do with anything?" the Doctor asked, now circling the red-head as he tried to work out what she was on about. So, the woman was carrying a child: why would that make her more susceptible to being kidnapped? But Amy completely ignored his question and, instead, walked past him, taking the crying girl from Merry as she went. She stopped by the tall man and handed him his little daughter.

"Where are you staying?" she asked.

"Pierre's Inn, not far from the River Seine." He said unsurely, receiving the girl gratefully. The Doctor watched in awe as Amy clearly made a mental note of it.

"We'll find your wife." She assured him, gently squeezing his arm, "But there's nothing you can do now. We'll let you know when we find her." With that, the Scot turned from him and walked straight past the Doctor and over to a small woman that he hadn't noticed before. She had been watching the situation with a reserved expression on her face. Once the tall man had disappeared around the corner of the alley, the Doctor turned on his friend.

"What the hell was that?" he cried, "We can't make promises like that!" But, yet again, Amy decided to ignore him.

"Doctor, River, this is Jeanette." She said sternly, "She has some information that might interest you."

The aforementioned Jeanette took the five of them back to her house and told the Doctor and River what she had told the others. The Doctor listened with sceptical interest. It seemed, to him, unreasonable that the Commune would be taking children, simply to experiment on them; what would they gain?

"I still don't think it's the Commune." Merry argued from her place on the sofa, lying across her mother's lap with her legs dangling off the arm.

"Well, who else would it be?" River asked, pausing the stroking of her daughter's hair to tilt her head questioningly at the young girl across her lap.

"I don't know." Merry answered, "But something's telling me that it's not them."

"Like an instinct?" the Doctor asked doubtingly. The young Time Lord turned her head to him so he continued, "I wouldn't trust them, if I were you; they've never been very reliable."

"Actually, my instincts have served me very well. They're pretty consistent." She said defensively. The Doctor snorted.

"Except at the horse races." River commented.

"Well, alright…" Merry shrugged.

"And hide and seek." The archaeologist added.

"I s'pose…" Merry mumbled.

"And when predicting test questions." River said.

"Alright, alright! I said 'consistent', not 'infallible'." The young girl snapped, pulling herself into sitting position and making to get off the chair. River laughed, pulling her back down again.

"I'm only teasing." She said gently, resuming stroking Merry's hair.

The Doctor smiled at them, slightly distracted by their playful banter. Shaking his head, he tried to focus on the conversation.

"And besides, who else could it be?" he said. Merry simply gave him a noncommittal shrug from her mother's lap.

"So, what are we going to do?" Amy asked, adding eagerly, "Are we gunna go scope it out?" The Doctor grinned, about to reply, when Rory – who was sat beside River – interrupted.

"No way." He said flatly. Amy looked to him in unimpressed confusion, so he continued, "No way am I going to let you run about and throw yourself into the heart of the danger."

"Why not?" Amy cried from her armchair, across from her husband.

"Because you wouldn't just be endangering your life, but the baby's too." He said, the tone of finalisation undeniably present in his voice. The Scot simply pouted childishly, looking down at her belly and stroking it gently. Rory, seeming pleased that he had for once silenced his wife, turned to the Doctor, "Is it really worth checking out? I mean, it could just be a coincidence that the Commune was disbanded at the same time as the disappearances started."

"Like I said, it's the perfect cover." Merry muttered. But the Doctor ignored her, dismissing her comment as he answered Rory.

"Well, yes. But at the moment it's the only lead we've got to go on. And we have to start somewhere." He said, rubbing his hands together as he tried to keep warm, "Something's not quite right about this whole situation. It's like it's too obvious."

"That's what I've been saying!" Merry cried, flapping her arms and nearly hitting River in the face, "Does no one listen to me?"

"No." the entire room answered in unison. The Doctor grinned at River as Merry got up, pulling herself from her mother's lap and wandering over to the window as she "harrumphed" loudly.

"Too obvious or not, we have to do something." The Doctor decided. Turning to Jeanette, he spoke again, "Is it only pregnant women who have gone missing?"

"Yes." Jeanette said simply, "They're usually quite far along, too; only weeks or days away from giving birth."

"So, supposedly, the Commune, or whoever's taking these women, need the children for something." He added thoughtfully.

"For experiments?" River suggested.

"Perhaps." The Time Lord said slowly, "Or maybe they're trying to make a point."

"What point would they be making?" Rory asked.

"A very dangerous one." The Doctor replied, "That they aren't afraid to hurt women and children."

"This is 1872; the slaughter of the innocent could cause uproar." River exclaimed.

"Or fear." He corrected, "Maybe that's what they want: to rule through fear. If you think about it, it must be pretty effective. Everyone would be scared stiff that they would be kidnapped and killed if they disagreed with the Commune, so they would naturally do as they're told. The perfect tool…"

The room went silent as each and every person fell into their own thoughts on the matter. But within a few minutes, Merry broke the silence.

"Pappy?" she called as she stood looking out of the window. It took the Time Lord a little longer than it should have to realise that she meant him; he wasn't used to anyone calling him that any more. In fact, he only remembered when everyone turned to look expectantly at him.

"Oh, that's me!" he said as he jumped, turning to look at his daughter, "Yes?"

"You know you were saying that there was something weird about this…" she said slowly.

"Yes?" he said, frowning as she continued to stare at something outside.

"Well, does a big glowy, flashy lighty thingy count as weird?" she asked in sarcastic amazement. The Time Lord bounded to the window, looking out and following Merry's eye line. Not twenty metres away, a huge bluey-white glow was emanating from the street. Without thinking twice, he ran outside. He could hear his friends hot on his heels as he raced towards the light. It was pulsating and some sort of energy within it was causing gale-force winds. He paused at the edge and he heard them stop as well.

"What do we do now?" Amy cried over the sound of the wind, as the Doctor whipped out his sonic and began scanning it.

"No idea!" he replied.

"What is it?" Rory asked.

"Not sure. Some sort of energy beam, or teleport?" the Time Lord answered, his voice beginning to hurt from the shouting.

"I have an idea." Merry yelled, "But it's very dangerous, very stupid and probably life-threatening."

"Those are the best." The Doctor said cheekily.

But without warning, Merry grinned at him and then threw herself into the centre of the light. The glow shone brighter and, before the Doctor could follow angrily, it disappeared completely.

"Merry, no!" he cried, trying pathetically to chase the last remnants of the energy. Cursing, he spun around to face his friends.

"Doctor, where has she gone?" River asked, panic clear in her voice. The Time Lord was about to respond when there was a crackling thumb from behind him. His friends gasped as their attention was drawn towards what was behind him.

"What the…" Rory muttered in disbelief.

The Doctor spun around, only to be met with the face of his teenage daughter, sporting a battered time vortex manipulator on her wrist.

"Excellent! I knew reading the manual would come in handy one day, even if it was mind-numbingly boring." She commented, grinning at them all, "Now listen up, because I only have the patience to explain this once."


	5. The Plan

**Note to readers: Blimey, it's taken me long enough. But I've finally written the next chapter! Hurrah! It may seem confusing now, but trust me, it'll all make sense eventually. Enjoy, and tell me what you think. **

"How can you be here? You just got…" the Doctor ended his phrase, making a noise that rather sounded like a clogged drain.

"No, I didn't. Well, I did, but not me. Rather, not this me – that me." Merry rambled, frowning as she evidently began confusing herself. Shaking her head, she continued, "I'm Merry from about half an hour in the future. Or more. Or less. I don't know, it's difficult to keep track in tricky situations."

"Right…" the Doctor muttered. He pointed to the time vortex manipulator on her wrist, "But how did you get that?"

"You gave it to me." she said plainly, looking around, "Where am I?"

"Well, the street where the blue light-" the Doctor started.

"No, not me. I mean the other me – present me. The one that disappeared." Merry said wearily.

"We don't know…" he replied.

"Well, I do. But how long ago did I disappear?" she asked.

"About a minute ago?" the Doctor answered, frowning as Merry grinned.

"Excellent timing, then." She said, turning around and walking away from them and down the street. After a few seconds she stopped and turned to face them, "Well, come on!"

Hesitantly, the four of them followed her.

"Doctor, what's going on?" Amy asked quietly, as River jogged ahead to catch up with Merry.

"I'm not too sure, but Merry seems to know what she's doing." He commented, deciding to listen into the conversation in front of him.

"Where are we going?" River asked her daughter in concern.

"To where that teleport took me." Merry replied, turning in sudden realisation to the three behind her, "Oh, I found Elise, by the way."

"Did you find out who was behind all of this?" River said, capturing the young girl's attention again.

"Erm, no. You lot burst through the door before I got a chance." Merry said distractedly, looking down a side street and pausing, before dismissing it and following the main road onwards.

"So what exactly happened when you stepped into the… teleport?" the Doctor called after her.

"I ended up in some kind of cell with Elise, who's as right as rain actually; very unphased by the whole situation. Barely got a look around before you ran through the door, threw this at my face and then shouted coordinates at me." she replied, waving the time vortex manipulator in the air.

The Doctor nodded. It wasn't like him to let others take charge; he preferred feeling that he was in control of the situation. But, although he would deny it if he were asked, he was rather enjoying watching his daughter. She was clearly in her element and he could see himself so much in her. To be honest, it was almost scary. Or creepy.  
>"I think it's down here." Merry said, stopping suddenly and pointing over her shoulder. The Doctor cocked his head and looked to and from Merry and the house that she was pointing at.<p>

"What are you doing?" River asked, looking at her daughter with the same concern. The young girl rolled her eyes.

"Well, I could only see outside of the window, couldn't I. So I don't know what the building itself looks like, only the ones across from it." She explained impatiently. Her eyes locked on the Doctor's, "Aren't you going to take charge?"

"No." he replied with a smile, "You're doing a grand job. Carry on." She studied his face apprehensively before holding her hand out. The other three watched in amazement as the Time Lord fished around in his pocket before calmly and proudly handing his daughter the sonic screwdriver. She grinned triumphantly and spun around, rushing up the steps to the house.

Immediately, the others rounded on him.

"OK, what are you doing? Why give her the sonic?" Amy asked flatly.

"Yeah, I thought you liked being in charge." Rory added. The Doctor shrugged, smiling.

"This is far more interesting." He stated, grinning as he watched Merry run her fingers over the door.

"Interesting? Doctor, there could be lives at stake!" Amy argued.

"I know." The Doctor replied flatly, "And if it seems like Merry's struggling, then I'll intervene." Obviously sensing the defensiveness in his tone, Amy spoke again.

"But she's only seventeen. She's not old enough for this." The Scot said desperately.

"Everyone deserves their chance, Amy. I gave you yours on Starship UK. Let Merry have hers now." He said. Looking put off, Amy turned to watch the young Time Lord's progress.

"Technically I stole my chance…" she muttered, denying defeat as readily as always.

The Doctor smirked at her and turned to look at a dumbstruck River. Smiling, he made his way over to her and turned her to face Merry. He squeezed his wife's shoulders.

"Look at our girl go." He whispered in her ear. The four of them watched in silence as Merry used the sonic to scan the door. She tapped the wood gently in different places and, when she was satisfied with her analysis, she turned to look at them with a serious expression on her face.

"I've checked for alarms and traps but the sonic doesn't seem to be picking them up, " she said, almost in disappointment, adding as if to comfort herself, "But there's bound to be some kind of defence system. I doubt an organisation on this scale would neglect to have some sort of security." The Doctor nodded his agreement.

"So what's the plan?" he asked, rubbing his hands together excitedly. Merry looked at him blankly.

"The plan?" she asked stupidly, "Oh, yes. We need a plan…"

Sitting down on the steps, a frown creased on Merry's forehead. She twirled the sonic screwdriver around in her fingers. After a few moments of silence, in which Merry glazed over thoughtfully and Amy huffed impatiently, the young Time Lord leapt up.

"I have a plan!" she cried triumphantly, hopping down the steps and approaching her parents. She indicated to River's pocket, "Mum, you need to give Pappy the time vortex manipulator. The coordinates are 031045/05011872. But don't set them now," she said as the Doctor began typing them in, "You just need to shout them at me when you get in there."

"Where is 'there'?" River asked.

"Not sure. We'll find out." Merry answered swiftly, bounding up the steps and turning to face them again, ignoring her rather put off mother, "We need to go as undetected as possible; we don't want a huge group to be there when we confront whoever's behind this. Once we get in to where Elise is, Amy and Rory, you try and get her out; Mum, you make sure we don't have any unwanted visitors; and Pappy, you can do the talking."

"What will you be doing?" the Doctor asked, after confirming his orders.

"I'll be helping Mum." She replied smugly, pulling a hand gun from her jacket pocket.

The Doctor nearly had a fit.

"What – where did you get that?" he cried.

"I found the armoury." She said simply.

"The TARDIS has an armoury?" he squealed as River grinned a little too much.

"Apparently, yes." Merry confirmed sarcastically.

"Right, well, we're deleting that room as soon as we get home – I mean, back to the TARDIS." The Doctor corrected himself in embarrassment. Merry shrugged and soniced the door as Amy smirked at the Time Lord's verbal slipup.

"Ready? Merry asked as the door swung open. Once she had been answered, she continued, "Remember, as undetected as possible."

As soon as she had put one foot through the threshold, wailing alarms went off. The screeching was physically painful and the Doctor had to place his hands tightly over his ears in an attempt to stay sane.

"On second thoughts, scrap that." Merry shouted, "Run!"


	6. The Woman In Jeans

**Note to readers: Sorry, for the monumentous delay, but I've been having difficulty with my writing. But hopefully, now that I'm seeing a shrink (yay! not.) I should get back on track. Well, no, that's a lie seeing as I'm now doing A levels (yay! not.) which mean that I'll have an enormous amount of work to do. Anywho, enjoy!**

As soon as she'd jumped through that blinding light, Merry regretted it. Some force came crashing down on her chest and all of the air in her lungs vanished instantly, leaving the naïve Time Lord feeling as if she'd been punched in the stomach. The light seemed to swirl around her body, but she barely had time to recognise the human figure in front of her before everything went dark and she fell painfully to the floor. Merry's head hit the stone of the ground with an almighty thump, and the sound of it resonated around the room. She groaned, rolling onto her back. She moved her legs experimentally, intending to check for any bumps and bruises. But she was stopped as her leg made contact with something. Merry sat up carefully, looking to her left. Lying by her side was the motionless body of a young woman. Forcing herself onto her hands and knees, Merry crawled to the woman's side.

As she got closer she was able to see that the unconscious lady was very heavily pregnant. Using her slightly bleary skills of deduction, Merry bent over the young woman and spoke as she checked her breathing.

"Elise?" she asked, her voice reduced to a mere whisper due to a lack of air in her bruised lungs. The Time Lord listened. The woman's breath was gradually returning to her, but she still seemed unresponsive. Merry checked her pulse. She was fine. Sitting back down on the floor, the young girl coughed and tried to catch her breath. She didn't bother looking at her surroundings; she knew where she was. She was in a cell. Like last time. And probably, like always.

It smelt damp and dank and very nineteenth century. Merry sighed, turning to look behind her. Through the cold metal bars, the cell seemed to continue; the same cold floor and the same grey walls extended until they reached a thick wooden door on the other side of the room. Arranging herself so that she was watching the unconscious Elise, Merry was almost overcome with a feeling of hopelessness, "Why am I not more like my parents? If they had been in this situation, they would have a plan already. They wouldn't just be sitting in a grotty sell with a seemingly comatose pregnant woman, grumbling under their breath."

Suddenly, Merry slapped herself around the face. Quite literally. She jumped up, irritated with her own lack of self-confidence, and kicked the wall as hard as she possibly could.

"You're pathetic! Stupid girl!" she screamed at herself, ramming her shoulder against the cold stones in anger. Merry felt her skin crawl and tingle. Looking down at her hands, she saw why. Her skin was glowing gold, the same colour as she'd seen when her father had told her that he was taking her in the TARDIS. The young girl gritted her teeth. She hated being a freak.

"Why do you glow like that?" came a high-pitched whisper from across the cell. Merry's head snapped up and she turned to see Elise sitting up in the middle of the floor, a look of fear upon her face.

"Elise!" Merry cried, skidding across the floor as she came up beside the young woman, "Are you alright?" But Elise only shuffled away.

"Who are you? And why do you glitter so?" she asked in response, wrapping her arm around her middle protectively.

"I'm Merripen. I'm here to help you, not to hurt you. That bright light that you saw was a teleport – it takes you from one place to another in a matter of seconds. But I'm going to keep you safe. My family will come for us and then we can take you back to your husband and your daughter." Merry explained, finishing with a rather forced smile, "And I'm a Time Lord. That's why I glow."

"You're a Lord… of Time?" Elise questioned hesitantly. Merry almost rolled her eyes.

"We're stuck in a frankly cliché cell, and all you're worried about is my species." She retorted in gentle sarcasm, resting back on her haunches. The French woman frowned.

"Species? Is it not just a title?" she asked, the monotony – if that could even be associated with this situation – of conversation seemingly relaxing her. Merry tilted her head curiously to the side. Elise was clearly an extraordinarily brave person; she was taking everything in, little by little and not over thinking anything. Despite her heritage and upbringing, Merry would've had to sheepishly admit that she would be panicking if she were in Elise's shoes.

"No. It's not. Time Lord is what I am." She replied.

"You're not of this world?" Elise said bravely, bracing herself. Merry gave her a sympathetic look and was about to reply in the affirmative when the door to the room outside the cells swung open with a loud creak.

The young Time Lord jumped up and threw herself against the bars. A tall, blonde woman entered the room. She wasn't nineteenth century, that's for sure. Her short-sleeved t-shirt and extremely tight denim jeans told Merry that much.

"Let us out." The young girl demanded. She knew as soon as she'd let it out of her mouth that it was a silly request. The blonde woman smiled.

"I was told to expect a child, but I never thought that it would be a child… from the future." She said, looking Merry up and down; obviously her clothes had given her away.

"I'm not a child." The Time Lord argued. Her comment seemed to be familiar to the woman as she let a little look of shocked sympathy past her stern façade. But it didn't last.

"How did you get in here?" the woman asked sternly, her eyes briefly flickering to Elise, who was still sitting on the floor.

"Through your bloody teleport, that's how." Merry retorted sharply.

"But it was only for her." The woman insisted, nodding to Elise, "How can you have possibly managed to get through after her."

"I was going to ask you the same thing…" the Time Lord muttered.

It took her longer than it really should have to realise exactly what had happened. Turning back to Elise, Merry's heart began thumping with satisfactory realisation.

"Elise, you were… taken from an alley, weren't you?" she started.

"Yes, I was." Elise replied simply. The young Time Lord turned back to the blonde woman.

"I found the teleport in a street a fair distance from that alley." She said, "What type teleport was it that you used?" The woman narrowed her eyes.

"Why should that be important?" she asked.

"Just tell me." Merry ordered. After receiving only a stony silence, she continued mockingly, "Come on. What harm can it do?"

"Twelve." The blonde woman finally answered.

"Type twelve teleports are still early technology. They take several seconds to transport material. Elise's husband said that she was gone in the blink of an eye. Theoretically, that's impossible." Merry explained. The woman only watched her curiously, and said nothing. The Time Lord continued, "But by some freak incident, you managed it. Now, a glitch like that would upset everything and you would end up burning out your engines, leaving poor Elise trapped in the void between one place and another. So, the teleport's emergency protocols would automatically stabilise the system by placing her safely down in an empty area nearby: the street. All of this could take several minutes depending on how big your engines are.

"And that's when I found it." She said, taking a deep breath before continuing, "I saw the emergency protocol stabilising the teleport and I jumped through only a few seconds before it closed behind me."

"Teleports don't close." The blonde woman said sharply after glaring at the girl before her for a few seconds.

"Emergency protocols do." Merry replied. An even longer silence followed her comment, "So, I'm right?" She was met with no response.

Crossing her arms, Merry smirked triumphantly. The blonde woman simply looked at her blankly. Feeling that the confirmation of her theory was a little overdue, the young Time Lord titled her head questioningly on the side. A few silent seconds passed and the woman turned on her heels and stalked off to the other side of the room. She stopped a few metres along the wall from the door, in front of a huge console. Her reflection was clear in the screen above the panel, and Merry could see that she seemed a little put off, maybe even upset. Sighing, the young Time Lord turned back to Elise, who was sitting on the floor, tutting at the damaged hem of her dress. Merry barely had time to roll her eyes before there was a huge banging noise from behind her, and what sounded like a battle cry. She whirled around, only to see her parents, Amy and Rory charging through the door.

Without warning, the Doctor threw something skilfully through the bars.

"031045/05011872!" he cried as Merry caught the object in her hands. Knowing what it was before she turned it over, the young girl looked up and shouted her retort.

"Why?" she said, tapping them in anyway.

"Because you told us to!" he replied, slightly distracted as Amy and Rory began fiddling with the panel on the cell door and River whirled around, pointing her gun at anything and everything. Despite being confused, Merry blindly followed her father's instruction. But just as she pressed down on the final key, the Doctor noticed the blonde woman who had been watching the commotion with a smug look of amusement on her face. His face dropped completely as he glazed at her, his final words echoing before Merry vanished, "It can't be…"


	7. Echo

**Note to readers: Sorry it's been so long! *ducks to avoid incoming rotten vegetables* But you know, shit happens. Sorry again! Please, if you have anything you want to see happen - or not see happen - tell me! I've had a few messages saying that they don't like a certain bit, and there's nothing I can do about it now that I'm half-way through the story, but I'm taking it into consideration. But you can't complain if you haven't told me! I don't bite, I promise.**

The woman's expression stayed the same, a small smile playing across her face as she studied the Doctor. The Time Lord didn't even notice the cell door slide open and Amy and Rory run in. His hearts were in his mouth as he edged closer.

"But… But that's impossible." He stuttered.

"I presume you're refering to the technology." The woman said smugly, indicating to the console behind her back. The Doctor just shook his head slowly, his mouth wide open.

"I mean you." He replied. At this, the woman frowned. The Doctor continued, edging towards her, "How can you be here?" The blonde woman shook her head and moved further towards the cell, outside which River was standing guard, gun poised.

"Can I help you?" she asked the archaeologist. River glanced to the Doctor who was still gaping at the woman. River rolled her eyes; it seemed that she would have to take charge.

"Why do you want Elise? Why do you want all of the women that you've taken?" she asked simply, cocking her gun in an obvious threat. The blonde shrugged nonchalantly, leaning against the wall beside the cell.

"Why would I tell you?" she replied.

"Because what you're doing is wrong; return them to their families." River ordered.

"There's a reason, you know. Don't judge an idea before you know the full of it." The blonde retorted, glancing at Elise with slight sympathy before looking back to River and adding, "And some of them don't have families. I'm doing them a favour."

"By taking them and experimenting on their babies?" Amy cried incredulously.

"What makes you think that I'm experimenting on the children?" The woman snapped, "I care for them. I'm their mother."

"No you're not, not their real mother." The Scot argued, getting more agitated by the second. Out of the corner of her eye, River could see Rory take Amy's shoulder and attempt to comfort her. Ignoring her, the woman turned back to River.

"I only take the women who are going to die in childbirth." She stated.

River was hit by a sudden wave of remorse. She looked to the Doctor to see his reaction, but the Time Lord was walking slowly towards the woman, still gaping widely at her, tears in his eyes.

"But why take them from their real families?" River asked, diverting her attention away from her seemingly feverish husband, "Wouldn't it be better to leave the child with their relatives?"

"Do you know what that does to a family?" the blonde asked, "It destroys it. That child will be brought up in the shadow of their mother's death, forever being unfairly blamed, and the brunt of any form of anger. That is wrong, not taking them away from that torment." Silence fell upon the room like a heavy blanket and River couldn't help but silently agree with the logic.

"I take the children and I care for them. I make them stronger than human children are. Elise's baby will make the one hundreth child, and then my work is complete." The woman continued.

"Make them stronger, how?" River pressed.

"I inject them with my own DNA." She answered, "It doesn't hurt them, but the growing process is much more rapid, so it's difficult."

"But why would your work be complete? What work?" River interjected, her anger at the woman slackening as she saw reason, "And your DNA? What species are you?" The woman laughed, almost coldly.

"So many questions!" she sighed.

"Answer me or I swear to whatever gods may be that I will shoot." River growled. She was losing it. They had waited long enough.

The woman's face fell.

"I'm the last of my kind. And technically the first, depending on what way you look at it." She answered finally, "I'm taking the children and mixing my DNA with theirs. Because they're so young it grows and mutates them until they're like me. I'll take them to an uninhabited world and we'll start afresh. An old race given a new birth." River took in the information as it came. It seemed reasonable enough.

"You're not hurting them." She said, keen to make her question more of a statement. The blonde woman nodded gently.

"I'm not hurting them." She repeated. River studied her face until she was satisfied with the clear honesty and then continued.

"What's your race then?" she asked sternly. The woman smiled as she replied.

"Time Lord."

River's mouth dropped wide open. She was about to make a comment, but the Doctor interrupted.

"Only the echo." He said. All five people turned to face him and the blonde woman's face fell dramatically.

"How…" she began.

"Jenny, it's me." he said, cutting her short as he made his way towards her. When all she did was look at him blankly, he continued, "I know I've regenerated, but don't you recognise me at all?"

"Dad?" she asked hesitantly. He nodded trying to bite back tears.

"How can you be here?" he asked, his voice not much louder than a whisper, "When I last saw you, you were… you were… you were dead." He was obviously having trouble getting the words out, but the others felt like outsiders; no one made to comfort him.

"I don't know what happened." Jenny replied, "One moment you were holding me and the next I was awake, on a table or something. What happened to me?" The Doctor shook his head and simply swallowed her in a hug.

It was probably rather touching, but River just watched emotionlessly. Dad? Had she missed something? He'd had a child with someone else. She was always joking about sleeping around, so why did it hurt so much that he'd obviously done the same? River was on the verge of making a snarky comment when Rory's voice broke the silence.

"Urm, I don't want to worry anyone, but Elise's water just broke." Everyone froze and the Doctor and Jenny slowly pulled apart. They all turned to face where the Ponds were knelt beside Elise in the cell. Only when the Parisian woman began to show clear signs of panic did anyone move.

Everything happened at once. Amy and Rory stood up, helping Elise to her feet quickly too. The Doctor rushed forwards and ran his fingers over her bump. Jenny flicked a few switches on the controls. River shoved her gun back into its holster and moved to the cell door.

"The baby's breech." The Doctor said, his tone grave as he led Elise towards the door. None of them said it, but they all knew: she wouldn't survive this, even with the Doctor helping; it was too late to do anything now. Scanning the crowd that had gathered, the Time Lord frowned, "Where's Merry?"

And right on cue, the young girl poked her head around the door.

"Did someone say Merry?" she asked, surveying the scene before her in curiosity.

"Yes. Where have you been?" the Doctor said.

"Taking a look around. This place isn't exactly well guarded." She answered nonchalantly. Looking in concern to Elise, she continued, "There's a delivery room down the corridor."

"It's equipped for everything." Jenny added, nodding to Merry.

"Ponds, you get Elise there and help her… do this; Merry, you take them." The Doctor instructed, waving them away.

"Wait, you're expecting me to deliver this baby?" Rory asked, only catching onto the implication as they were almost out of the door.

"You'll be fine; you're a doctor." The Time Lord replied indifferently. He waited for them to leave before catching the two at the back, "River and Jenny, you're staying with me. We need to chat."


	8. What You Taught Me

**Note to readers: Sorry this has been so long. Just a warning, this is possibly the worst thing I've ever written, mainly due to a hateful reviewer who refused to be constructive and instead told me that I'll never make it as a writer and my work is "word-vomit", along with much depression-inducing (no sarcasm intented) abuse. But never mind. I'll just be a little wobbly on my feet for a while. Also, I really need to plan the ending before I start. This time, I will. Get ready to meet Jim the Fish and another relatable OC! Enjoy my word-vomit!**

"River, let me explain." The Doctor started, eyeing his wife nervously. She only looked at him uncaringly.

"Don't bother." She said monotonously. The Time Lord watched her. She didn't seem all that bothered. Her expression was stern, yet indifferent. It confused him. She bit the inside of her lip, as if trying to hold back an emotional explosion. But she still didn't do anything. Was this how she was reacting? She wasn't mad? She wasn't going to –

The Doctor cursed as the contact made his cheek sting bitterly. Too soon; he'd dismissed the slap too soon. Attempting to hide the fact that he was in a surprising amount of pain, the Time Lord turned back to River.

"You think you can just sleep around and get away with it, you bastard." She growled menacingly, advancing slowly towards him.

"What – no!" the Doctor cried helplessly, backing away, "I would never… It's not – it's… I – Jenny, help me!"

"He's my father… and my mother." Jenny said. River stopped and frowned. They all went silent and the archaeologist looked back and forth between the two of them. Taking a deep breath, the Doctor spoke again.

"She was created from my tissue sample. Genetically, I'm both of her parents." He mumbled.

"You're honestly expecting me to believe this nonsense." River snapped.

"It's not nonsense!" the Doctor cried, "It's the truth."

River simply huffed, having no reasonable argument, so the Doctor took the opportunity to take his wife by the shoulders and look her in the eyes.

"Would I lie to you?" he asked gently.

"Rule one." The archaeologist stated smugly. Ignoring her reference, the Time Lord only looked imploringly into her eyes. Soon she sighed, "I still don't like it."

"You don't have to like it. You just need to accept it and – and move on." The Doctor stuttered, his nerves beginning to relax, "Right now, it's Elise we should be worrying about." River opened her mouth, about to reply, when Jenny cut in.

"We don't need to. She'll die. There's nothing we can do about it." She said bluntly.

"Oh, so negative and… military." The Doctor tutted, "I don't know who you get that from, but it certainly isn't me." Jenny rolled her eyes and he grinned, bounding to the door.

"And you're going to save her, are you?" she asked sarcastically.

"Yes, I am." He answered happily, pulling open the door.

"With what? Magic? Even you can't save a dead man walking." She muttered irritably and she made her way over to him, followed by River.

"Just you watch." He said. She paused before walking out of the door.

"The bow tie looks ridiculous, by the way." Jenny commented over her shoulder. River smirked at the Doctor's horrified expression.

"I was wrong; I quite like her." The archaeologist stated before following her newfound step-daughter.

"Too many women, too little fashion sense." The Time Lord sighed as he too left the room.

But he was wrong. He hated being wrong, but this was just too much. He couldn't do anything to save her. He tried everything, but she was beyond help. The baby was fine, a healthy baby boy; Rory delivered him. No one said anything as the centurion pulled the white sheet over Elise and muttered an apology.

They left quietly and Jenny called in a few of her friends to help clear up. The Doctor and River took the child and put him in the nursery.

"There are so many of them." River whispered tearfully, "What's going to happen to them now? What are they?"

"A new start for the Time Lords; a new beginning. I'll find Jenny and her helpers a new planet to start on." The Doctor replied.

"Can't we take them back to their families?" River pleaded.

"Not now. Jenny's done too much damage. Besides, they're not even human. What kind of life would they have here?"

"Can't you do something?" The Time Lord snorted at his wife's question.

"To Jenny? What, like ground her?" he asked sarcastically, "Maybe if I'd got here sooner, I could've save some of them." River studied his face as he turned from the nursery and started down the corridor.

"I can't believe you're not angry about this."

"Don't you see, River – I am. I'm furious!" He growled, "But tell me what I should do. Give me another way."

"I can't" she replied. The Doctor nodded sharply.

"Exactly." The Time Lord sighed, "I'm trying to do what's right for the children."

They reached the end of the corridors and turned into an office. Jenny, Amy and Rory were sat around a desk, along with Merry.

"Merry! Where have you been?" River cried, rushing over to her daughter.

"I found this office while you lot were… dealing with things; I didn't want to get in the way. I was checking through the data." The young girl replied.

"She hacked everything. Impressive, really." Jenny commented with a half-smile.

"Of course she's impressive. She's my daughter." River snapped. But the Doctor wasn't really listening to the chatter.

"How are you going to cope?" he asked Jenny. She looked up.

"I have plenty of people to help. People I've met on my travels, people who need a home." She replied. He watched her in stony silence. She titled her head a little, "I'm only doing what you taught me to do."

"I didn't teach you to steal other people's children!" he cried.

"You taught me to do what I believe is right. And this is what I believe – that no child should have to suffer like orphans do. Is it their fault that their mothers died? Should they suffer?" Jenny left the question open, but they all knew that it was rhetorical.

The air become silent again and they all became lost in their own thoughts. Before long, Merry turned to her mother and whispered.

"Ma, I'm tired. Can we go home?" Although she was speaking quietly, they could all hear, seeing as no one else was making a noise. The Doctor almost smiled at her comment; she was so young, so naïve; he liked that. He could only hope that it lasted.

"Yeah, Doctor, Amy's getting tired too. I don't want her working herself too hard." Rory said.

"I'm fine…" the Scot muttered. The Time Lord nodded.

"Jenny, you take the baby to Pierre's Inn, near the River Seine: ask for Elise's husband. Rory, River, you take Amy and Merry back to the TARDIS. I'll go and speak with Jeanette: she deserves to know what's happened, seeing as we just ran out on her."

"Then what?" Merry asked worriedly as her mother tugged her to her feet.

"Then I'll drop you back at the Ponds for tea and scones whilst Jenny and I sort out this mess as best we can." He answered.

They all moved into action rather slowly and the Time Lord allowed them to pass him as they left. But Amy stopped by his side.

"What will all the people think? They'll never find their wives or children." She said. The Time Lord shrugged.

"It'll be one of those unsolved mysteries that ends up with a documentary dedicated to them in a couple of hundred years' time." The Doctor half-smiled, "No one will ever know."


	9. Happy Birthday

The loud whirring of the TARDIS engines woke Merry. She sat up in bed suddenly and pushed her hair back as it blew across her vision. Almost immediately, the door swung open and the Doctor bounded out.

"Happy birthday!" he cried excitedly. Merry blinked, taking in her father's appearance. His suit, bow tie and braces were the same as usual, but he wore a vibrant pink sash across his front with "18" splashed all over it. His shoulders were covered in the contents of several party poppers and a lot of confetti – most of which fluttered to the floor with his wild movements – and he carried in his hands a rectangular parcel and party blower. Buy the icing on the colourfully camp cake was, of course, the cardboard party hat on his head. Merry sighed, rubbing her face in an attempt to wake herself up a little more.

"Pappy, my birthday isn't for three days." The Time Lord's expression faltered slightly and he looked back to the TARDIS.

"Saying goodbye to Amy and Rory must've upset her coordinates." He mumbled, stroking the wooden box fondly before shaking his head and turning back to Merry, "Never mind: I'm here now." He bounced across the room and threw himself onto the bed beside her; the rest of the confetti was sprinkled across her carpet as he went. The Time Lord thrust the parcel vigorously into her lap, "Open it! I made it myself."

"You made it?" she asked dubiously, gingerly fingering the package as if it might explode at any second. The Doctor smiled and nodded enthusiastically. Merry paused and looked him in the eyes.

For her seventeenth birthday he had made her a pasta collage. It had been pretty impressive for all his creative worth, but it wasn't exactly what she had hoped for. That was the trouble with travelling in opposite directions; to him she was only a few years old. And he had the mind of a child – that probably didn't help. Deciding that it felt solid and harmless, Merry took the string from around the parcel and tore the brown, crinkled paper away. It fell away to reveal a tatty book. There was no title or inscription on the cover and the spine was ring bound.

Merry looked to her father. He was watching her expectantly and nodded encouragingly when she paused. Merry looked down again and carefully opened the book. It crackled a little as the pages, heavily coated in glue and sellotape, fell apart to reveal an opening message. Merry immediately recognised that the writing was in her father's hand and she began reading.

"_Happy birthday, Merry! I feel it's my moral duty as your father to impart some kind of knowledge now that you're eighteen, so bear with me. Firstly, never get a boyfriend. They're not worth it. Also, I'll never approve of any of them __unless__ they were Einstein. In fact, not even Einstein – he was a womaniser at the best of times, good old Bertie. Cheeky fella, but a good laugh. He always had a joke up his sleeve, quite literally once or twice. _

_Anyway, my second piece of advice is to never listen to your mother. She tries to contradict me far too much for her own good and I dislike that in a woman. Never contradict your husband, Merry, especially if he's someone like me. Except you won't need to worry about that, because to have a husband, you first need a boyfriend. And I've just told you not to get one of those, so ignore the husband thing. My point is – or was, I lose track – that you should ignore everything that woman says, unless she's right, in which case, listen to her. Just, use common sense really. _

_And finally, if you've bothered reading this far, believe in yourself. I know you might not have a normal life or a normal family, and I know this whole teenage Time Lord thing is scary, but you'll be alright, as long as you hold onto your dreams. Never let them go, Merry not for anyone. I believe in you._"

Merry finished reading several minutes before she eventually looked up. She could feel tears welling in her eyes, but she forced them back; she hated crying. It was too much fussing for no good reason.

"Thank you so much, Pappy." She said quietly. He didn't seem to register that his message meant a great deal to her. She could feel the tingling start in her head as her emotions began to heighten, but the Doctor didn't notice. He frowned.

"Thank you for what? You haven't even looked inside it yet." The young girl was about to explain, but decided not to; she'd only confuse him. She turned the page and almost dropped the book. Splattered across the double spread in front of her was a maze of things: a tuft of fur from the Fuath, the bio-damper ring, a clipping on the Fuath from what looked like a text book, a photo of Amy, Rory, River and Merry taken by the Doctor and a picture of space whiskey. There were plenty of other things there, but the young Time Lord was far too excited to take in all of them.

She turned the next page hurriedly and found even more sellotape-coated things. A badly attached map of Paris fluttered a bit and covered the scrawled title 'Paris, 1872'. A hand-written receipt from the café they ate in stuck out awkwardly in the corner. There was a photo of Jenny and the Doctor – both of them smiling, but only for show – along with a few pictures of the new planet. Merry had always wondered why her father hadn't just taken them back off to Gallifrey; surely there would've been people willing to take in at least one of the children? But he must've had his reasons, he always did, and she didn't have the confidence to question them yet. She would work on that.

Merry turned the page again: it was completely blank.

"The rest of the pages are for you to fill in." The Doctor said, answering her unasked question.

"This is amazing." Merry cried, looking to her father. The Time Lord grinned and Merry was about to hug him when her door was flung open. River glared into the early morning gloom, but her stare faltered as she recognised the Doctor.

"Oh. It's you." She said in disappointment, slipping her gun back into the holster she wore over her pyjamas.

"Who did you think it was?" The Time Lord asked suspiciously. River shrugged, giving him a suggestive glance.

"Want breakfast?" she called over her shoulder as she walked back out. Merry looked back to her father. The Time Lord was watching the door with a pathetic kind of longing. It didn't take him long to follow his wife from the room. Merry grimaced. Disgusting.

She stayed staring at the scrapbook for several minutes and then found her dressing gown. She put it on extra slowly and then wandered cautiously downstairs. She didn't want another awkward run in with her parents. Merry peered around the kitchen door, but thankfully they were only sitting at the table, quietly talking over cups of tea. Merry sidled in, pouring herself a mug, cradling a bowl of cereal in her arm and grabbing the milk with her free hand. She sat down heavily at the table and set about eating her breakfast.

"So what do you want to do for your birthday then, Merry?" The Doctor asked.

"Not my birthday." Merry muttered through a mouthful of cereal. The Time Lord ignored her.

"I'll take you anywhere you want, any when you want." The young girl looked up hopefully.

"Could I take a friend?" The Doctor frowned.

"If you do, I choose where we go." He answered sternly.

"Because anywhere you choose will be so much safer." River snorted sarcastically. The Doctor shot her an insulted glare and decided not to take any notice of her comment.

"Finish your breakfast and get ready. We'll pick up your friend on the way."

Half an hour later, River saw the two of them off with an amused smirk on her face. Merry knew why – the Doctor's irritation suggested that he didn't. They arrived at one of the white house only ten minutes later. From a distance it had looked just like all the other houses, but on closer inspection the house number thirteen was wonky and one of the window shutters to the left of the front door was hanging from its hinges. The gate creaked open noisily and Merry was able to see the worried expression on her father's face as he noticed the scorch marks on the lawn.

Merry grinned and knocked on the door firmly. There was a loud scuffling and an almighty thump. The windows to the left of the door blew out and shattered glass sprinkled the lawn. Smoke starting billowing from the edges of the frame and both of the Time Lords started to cough a little. Heavy footsteps sounded an approach and the door was flung open. Whoever opened it wasn't visible through the grey smog. Merry waved her arm about until it began to clear and a head of messy blonde hair came into view.

"Her!" The Doctor cried incredulously, "You want to take her?" Merry rolled her eyes.

"Nobody's taking me anywhere." Lilly snapped.

"Is Ellie in?" Merry asked her mother's friend. Age hadn't wearied her at all – she still looked as young as ever, just like River.

"I wouldn't be head to toe in soot if she wasn't." Lilly replied, "Come in."

Merry followed her inside first and they took a sharp left into the room that the explosion had come from. The room was an absolute mess. The walls were blackened and objects lay smashed across the floor. In the centre of the room lay the tattered remains of a fish tank and a mangled computer shell. It took Merry several moments to recognise that there was also a blackened figure stood alongside the remains that were clearly at the heart of the explosion.

"What happened here?" Merry coughed violently. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the Doctor forget his hesitance and moved to examine the mess.

"An explosion." The figure replied. Merry was about to retort when her father cried out.

"You blew up a steel reinforced computer with sodium!" The blackened figure only blinked.

"Pappy, this is Ellie. Ellie, you know who this is." Merry said. Ellie turned to greet him.

"Howdy." Looking slightly taken aback, the Doctor returned the gesture with a head nod.

"You'd better get cleaned up if you're going to come with us." Merry commented, looking in minor disdain at her filthy friend.

"Where are we going?" Ellie asked, still not showing much interest in the situation.

"Anywhere, any when." The Doctor chimed in happily – it was clearly his favourite line. The soot-covered girl's eyes lit up and she engulfed the Time Lord in a side hug that turned into more of a rugby tackle. He very nearly fell under the unexpected forced and only regained posture when she let him go and dashed upstairs, leaving a trail of soot behind her. The Doctor sighed, dusting himself down and glaring at his daughter. Merry grinned.

A short while later, Ellie bounded back down the stairs and into the kitchen – where the Time Lords had been relocated to – wearing clean clothes. Her ash blonde hair was now visible, contrasting the one dyed streak of black and complementing her pale skin. In her hands she carried a small, plain box which she held out to Merry as she approached. She was a few inches shorter than the young Time Lord, and of an athletic build, but she was inarguably strong.

"It's from my dad." She commented. Merry gave her a suspicious look. She knew Ellie's dad well and did not trust him to be sensible, "I know you've still got three days to go, but I want to know what's inside." Ellie shook the box temptingly and it clattered a little. Merry had the same weakness; she wanted to know. Reluctantly, the young Time Lord sighed and took it from her friend. She glanced up at her father, who was edging closer to get a better look. Merry had a bad feeling about this gift, but she held her breath and pulled off the lid all the same. She immediately wished she hadn't.

Almost spilling over the edges of the box were several dozen condoms. Merry froze in horror. The Doctor made a strangled noise before blushing a deep red from ear to ear, and forcing the lid shut as if just the image would ruin his daughter's innocence. Ellie just laughed loudly and Lilly watched the scene blankly.

"This isn't funny." Merry said quietly.

"What kind of gift is that?" The Doctor cried. He huffed quietly, "Only Jack would do something like that."

"Jack Harkness, I presume." Lilly commented. The Doctor spun around.

"You know him?" Lilly raised an eyebrow.

"He got me pregnant, so just a little bit." She replied sarcastically. The Time Lord looked to her stomach. The shock was blindly obvious in his eyes, "I'm not pregnant anymore."

"You had-" The Doctor froze as realisation fell heavily on him. Merry watched with a knowing smirk as he turned slowly to face the two young girls, "You." Ellie looked to Merry, and then back to the Doctor. He hopped over to her and looked her over, now noticing the resemblance. He grabbed her hands and studied them carefully before looking into her eyes.

"Howdy." She said with a happy smile. The Doctor blinked and repeated her greeting with a hushed kind of awe.

"Howdy…"

The room became silent as the Doctor and Ellie began some kind of unannounced staring competition. Merry looked hopefully to Lilly.

"Are you going?" She asked suddenly and brashly. The Time Lord looked up, still in a daze.

"Oh, yes. Allons-y." He turned quietly, dithered a bit and then left. Merry and Ellie smirked at each other. This was looking set to be the best birthday ever.


End file.
